Cedar Plank Steak

Cedar plank… Steak? I know some of you had to read that a second time because you assumed that said salmon. Why is it that we only plank salmon? Why do we only infuse that oh so red fish (if it’s the good stuff) with that sultry cedar smoke? Or any kind of smoke for that matter? This recipe is part of my New Year’s Resolution to do more plank grilling. I know, nobody does their resolution, but this year I’ve been doing a pretty good job. I made planked beef tenderloin, maple planked pork chops, and planked pork loin. Dad helped the cause and planked scallops. I also planked shrimp with a sriracha remoulade, but I lost the darn pictures.

Cedar Plank Steak Ingredients:

1 massive steak
salt
black pepper
granulated garlic
1 cedar plank

I’d call that a massive steak! For perspective, the cutting board is more than an inch thick.

Don’t do this with a little, wimpy steak. It needs to be well over an inch thick, otherwise the planking process will take it straight to medium and then the sear will take it to well done. And yes, this is sort of a take on the reverse sear method.

First take the steak out of the fridge and set it on the counter and allow it to come to room temperature. In the meantime, drop a cedar plank into some water and soak for about an hour:

Yes, that’s our logo on the plank. You know you’ve made it when your name is in cedar!

When the plank has been in the water for about an hour, prepare the grill for high heat grilling. In this case, I sparked up my Char-Broil Grill2Go:

Char-Broil Grill2Go

Grilling planks are the perfect accessory for your gas grill because they bring that wonderful smoke flavor that is normally exclusive to a charcoal grill.

Now that the grill is hot, and I’m talking 700 degrees hot, take the plank out of the water and place on the grill and close the lid for about two minutes:

The Cedar Plank on the Grill

During that time, season the steak with coarse salt, black pepper, white pepper and a dusting of granulated garlic on both sides:

Seasoned

Head back outside, and open the lid on the grill and flip the cedar plank over. Put the steak on the plank:

Here is the steak after smoking on the plank for about five minutes:

Browning up nicely

Now here’s where I had a little problem. I ran out of fuel in the propane tank I was using and had to switch it over. Luckily those little cans are pretty cheap and I keep some extras around.

Smoke the steak on the cedar plank until it reaches an internal temperature of about 120 (which took about 12 minutes plus the tank switch over):

120 degrees

And here we have the steak ready to come off the plank and get a nice sear:

Ready to come off the Grill

Take the steak off the cedar plank and put back on the grill grates to get some grill marks:

Sear

It shouldn’t take long to get some nice grill marks. Maybe 2-3 minutes. Now normally, I tell you to rotate 45 degrees, but the cedar plank steak was already at 120 when it went onto the direct heat, so just do a single hatch rather than cross hatch, and flip it over:

Seared with some great Grill Marks

Get some grill marks on the other side and then remove from the grill and plate:

Plated and Resting

Let the steak rest for at 3-4 minutes so the juices redistribute throughout the meat and don’t wind up a puddle on the plate if it is sliced too early.

But how does it look on the inside?

Sliced

And yet another final shot, just because I couldn’t decide which picture to use. A little meat porn never hurt anyone:

Sliced, part deux

But how was it? It was definitely smoky and had more than a hint of cedar. Basically, if you’re one of those people that doesn’t like cedar plank salmon, then this recipe is not for you, but I would suggest using oak or maple and you will really dig it. Now if you like cedar plank salmon and you like steak, then you will love, Love, LOVE cedar plank steak! Oh, one more thing. This steak was UBER juicy. Juicier than just about any steak I’ve ever had.

As I was gobbling this steak down, my six year old came out and asked for a bite. He chewed swallowed and his eyes narrowed on me. “It’s smoky dad. I don’t like it.”

I responded, “It’s supposed to be smoky.”

“I don’t like it dad,” Finnegan responded.

“I do,” I replied and went to work on another bite while Finnegan watched me in silence for a minute or two.

Then he said, “Can I have another bite?” He had another bite and six more. It was different for the first bite, but after he got over that, he really dug it too and chowed with me.

Scott Thomas

Scott Thomas, the Original Grillin’ Fool, was sent off to college with a suitcase and a grill where he overcooked, undercooked and burned every piece of meat he could find. After thousands of failures, and quite a few successes, nearly two decades later he started a website to show step by step, picture by picture, foolproof instructions on how to make great things out of doors so that others don’t have to repeat the mistakes he’s made on the grill.

9 comments

This steak looks amazing. I absolutely love Cedar Plank Salmon, and infusing this subtle smokey flavor into a steak using a plank is brilliant! I will be trying this ASAP! Have pinning and will be sharing on FB. Thanks so much for sharing!

Scott. Love your article. First and only time I has steak on cedar was in Sweden. They called it steak on a plank. Since then I have tried it a few times and all I accomplished was burning up my cedar plank. I have let them soak for hours with same results. I was cooking on medium heat as well, what am I doing wrong ?????

The grill is too hot. Maybe the temp gauges are off and while you think you are at medium high, you are actually blazing hot. Another thing might be the plank is too big or steak too small. The more of the surface area that’s covered, the less likely it will catch on fire. The meat insulates the plank…

In California, it’s all about tri-tips. I plan to do this tonight using your method. FYI, I get untreated cedar fence boards from the local lumber yard and cut them as needed. A heck of a lot cheaper and thicker then the expensive foodie ones. Will rate once I try it.

I cook on a tripod over a fire pit. The tripod has a key that allows me to move the grill grate up and down over the fire so planking just about anything is very easy. I’ll be trying one this weekend. Thanks.